Tall Steve wrote:I'm about to start my first IC-based distortion project. Besides grounding yourself, what are the proper guidelines for handling ICs without shorting them out?

99% of ICs are OK as long as you don't break the legs off! Be certain to identify the orientation of the device (some can be killed when power is applied by being plugged in the wrong-way-'round!).

Some "A"-series and "UBE"-series CMOS ICs are static sensitive, and so are some BBD ICs (used in time-delay effects). Use an earthed-tip soldering iron, wear a static-discharge wrist strap, and wear natural fibre clothes. An earthed work surface also helps. When I worked in Japan, the girls on the production lines couldn't wear tights or stockings, and ALL their clothes - including their underwear - had to be cotton. There were regular clothing inspections!

There's 2 types of ESD damage. The one where a charge is discharged to the component and the one where the component is charged and discharges to it's environment. For that reason proper ESD precuations in 2014 (and 20 years prior) descibe your soldering tip has a resistance in the meg-ohm range to ground. Definitely not a hard grounded tip. Similar a workspace is not earthed but has a typical resistance in the meg-ohm range to ground. This way components will slowly discharge emselves and not get damaged.

or, in short, your soldering iron and workspace are not hard grounded.

I seem to remember that some ICs have built-in ESD protection in the form of Diodes.......

I've been pretty cavalier about handling ICs properly to avoid ESD damage, to the best of my knowledge I have never had a single IC damaged by ESD, maybe I've been lucky.....

A good way to store ICs is to stick them in special conductive foam pads, if you can't find any a good substitute is a piece of 1cm thick Styrofoam sheeting which has been wrapped in ordinary household Aluminium foil as used for cooking/wrapping.....

Genius is not all about 99% perspiration, and 1% inspiration - sometimes the solution is staring you right in the face.-Frequencycentral.

DrNomis wrote:if you can't find any a good substitute is a piece of 1cm thick Styrofoam sheeting which has been wrapped in ordinary household Aluminium foil as used for cooking/wrapping

Simon! Please. read what I wrote above on components discharging emselves through conductive materials. Re-read untill you grasp the concept. And then, never, ever again, even consider that styrofoam (horrible) , Aluminum foil (aargh) or a combination of the 2 is a "good" substitute. A wooden drawer is considerably safer.